[edubsauntie]

Hello,<br>
My son, Miles, is 12 months old this week. His top 2 teeth just started coming in 2 weeks ago. We've noticed yellow and brown spots on the 2 top teeth. The spots are not by the gum line but closer to the bottom and middle of the teeth.<br>
He has never liked falling asleep with the bottle, nor had he ever tried juice until last week.<br>
So much that I've read talks about spots being from tooth decay. Does anyone have an opinion on this? Could it be decay when he has not been drinking his bottle falling asleep and has not has sugary drinks either?<br><br>
We have his 12 mo check up this week and hopefully the pediatrician can give us some ideas or refer us to a pediatric dentist.<br><br>
Any advice you can give would help!<br><br>
Thanks,<br>
Kim

 

[liam's mom]

imo, yes it could be. my ds has four cavities <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/greensad.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="greensad"> and has never fallen asleep with a bottle, never had a lot of juice, you get the picture.<br><br>
i would def. ask your ped, and probably would see a ped. dentist. better safe than sorry. in the meantime, make sure to brush those teeth at least twice a day, encourage him to drink water after eating, and don't let any food particles hang out in his mouth.<br><br>
good luck!

 

[Chele]

sorry to say it could be decay, probably due to weak enamel. My ds has decay on his 4 front teeth. Right after they came in we noticed some decay and from that point on it progressed rapidly. Only a month or so later a good portion of his enamel had come off, while the rest of his teeth remain in perfect condition. Tooth decay this early is genetic. It almost starts before there is even time to stop it. My ds NEVER had juice, or even sugar and I started cleaning his teeth as soon as I saw them. Nothing really helped in our situation. I am now using spry tooth gel with xylitol. It is very effective in preventing decay and it is natural so you don't need to worry as with flouride. I have chosen to just let my son's teeth go, as I try to maintain them as best as possible. I did this for two reasons. I was not comfortable with putting him under general anesthia so young, 2nd the top front teeth are problematic to fix and the work you may chose to do is likely to just fall apart anyway. Be cautious of pediatric dentists, few understand breastfeeding and are sure to point the finger at nursing. Nursing does not cause decay. Do your research, get more than one opinion, and be sure about it if you chose to do surgery under sedation. I have seen several pediatric dentists and have done much of my own research and I am convinced that a lot of unecessary dental work is done on toddlers. The la leche league web site has some good articles on decay as well. Brush, use the xylitol gel if you can, and do your homework. Most of all don't panic and rush into anything. Baby teeth are not as big of a deal as some ped. dentists may want you to believe.